ZEN M.E.P. is your source for shop drawings
modeled with
21st Century accuracy

ZEN Industries'
July 2011 e-Newsletter

Complementary Information:

Inefficiencies of "In-House" Production
by HVAC Contractors

Traditionally, HVAC Contractors not only installed ductwork, but each company
maintained its own in house fabrication facility. The logic was simple:
direct control of production, assurance of quality, reliable and timely
delivery. Who could argue with all that?

But in recent years, the flaws in this traditional logic have become
more apparent. At ZEN Industries, we've seen the struggles of HVAC
contractors as they strive to justify continued in house production.
But the problems are mounting.

Skilled,
qualified labor is becoming increasingly more difficult to find.

Lack of purchasing power in materials procurement means higher
cost.

Maintaining equipment and inventory requires its own
infrastructure.

As the economy dips, keeping individual in-house shops busy is a
challenge.

Some contractors have marketed their shops for outsourced
projects, only to find other contractors prefer purchasing
products from a supplier, not the competition!

Contractors realize their core competency is installation, not
manufacturing.

Dedicated
HVAC Fabrication Facilities
Win the Day

It only makes sense that a facility devoted to HVAC ductwork
production, supplying a nationwide clientele, would have the best
production people, the most experienced estimators, the lowest cost in
materials procurement, the most efficient systems for inventory
handling, etc. After all, estimation, production, and delivery
would be their core competencies - the things they do best.

The key barriers to HVAC Contractors divesting themselves of the in
house production albatross are trust and reliability. In the past,
no doubt, contractors have been burned by unreliable 3rd party
distributors.

Today, it is possible to build a solid hand-in-glove relationship,
directly with your HVAC fabrication facility. At ZEN Industries,
we believe we've developed one of the best programs for this type of
relationship.

Working with each contractor, we streamline estimating using the most
recent technical advancements, collaborate on ductwork design for
greater performance and installation efficiency, and review project
obstacles up-front in an effort to reduce labor and material waste.

While finding the best cost has always been important, working with
ZEN Industries brings a new dimension of value added services, including
insights that offer each of our customers a competitive advantage.

As the science of HVAC production continues to advance, it will
become less and less viable for HVAC contractors to maintain
inefficient, small production shops. Economies of scale and
concentrations of talent and expertise will continue to favor dedicated
fabrication facilities like ZEN Industries.

To learn more, including how your company can develop a working
partnership with ZEN Industries that takes advantage of our new
streamlined automated bidding process, please contact ZEN’s VP of Sales
& Estimating, Drew McCaffrey, at 877-600-0274, or via email to
Drew.McCaffrey@ZENIndustries.com.

Previous Newsletter Articles of Interest

Automating HVAC Production Requests. Modern industry hates waste. At ZEN Industries, Inc. after virtually
eliminating waste in material production, we looked for ways to increase
efficiency even after achieving perfection on the shop floor.